


Can't Take That Away from Me

by babthebroadwaygoldfish



Category: Newsies (1992), Newsies - All Media Types, Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: Heavy Angst, M/M, Song fic, y'all im sorry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-21
Updated: 2018-06-21
Packaged: 2019-05-26 16:41:48
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15005045
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/babthebroadwaygoldfish/pseuds/babthebroadwaygoldfish
Summary: based off of the song "Can't Take That Away from Me" from An American in Paris.





	Can't Take That Away from Me

Our romance won’t end on a sorrowful not,  
Though by tomorrow you’re gone;  
The song is ended, but as the songwriter wrote,  
The melody lingers on.

It had been five days since it had happened, five days since Spot had been in the apartment. He thought the next time he would be in there would be with a recovering Race. He was wrong. He stood outside of the door alone, hands shaking as he tried to unlock the door. He took a deep breath as he finally opened the door to go in.

As Spot looked around the apartment through tear worn eyes, searching for something, anything that wouldn’t remind him of what he had lost. But he was everywhere. It was just as he left it the night they’d called him. Race’s clothes, Race’s shoes, his smell tainted the apartment. It was all set up like nothing had happened, like Race wasn’t never coming back. Spot couldn’t bare it. 

They may take you from me, I’ll miss your fond caress.  
But though they take you from me, I’ll still possess.

Stumbling numbly towards the kitchen “Small but cozy” as Race used to call it, Spot couldn’t help but smile at the memory of the way Race used to move so smoothly around, the way he could make cooking look so artful.

He was always dancing, he thought to himself, though the memory was quickly pushed away as his eyes landed on the old flat cap that was laying on the counter. Race’s hat. He had found it at a little thrift store off fifth and had insisted on getting it. He never seemed to want to take it off, no matter how ridiculous it looked with his jean jacket and sweatpants, always crookedly thrown over his head, so that his blonde hair stuck out. 

The way you wear your hat  
The way you sip your tea  
The memory of all of that 

Tenderly picking up the beaten cap, he felt tears pricking the back of his eyes as he held it to his chest. He could smell the shampoo that Race used to use, that stupid strawberry fields shit that was meant for little kids, but Race loved the smell of. Spot didn’t notice he was crying again till he noticed the wet marks on the hat. Shaking his head at himself, he tried not to think about the memories, just making more rush at him as he left the kitchen, taking in the rest of the apartment.

No, no they can’t take that away from me  
The way your smile just beams  
The way you sing off key

The couch was still covered in blankets, the coffee table littered with untouched drinks. They were gonna have a movie night, the night it happened. Race had finally convinced Spot to let them watch Frozen, so excited that he had been singing “Let it Go” all day. Spot pretended to be annoyed, but the way he lit up when he sang always made him smile.

Spot had just finished setting up their usual movie night setup when he got the call from the hospital. Now looking back at it, Spot would have watched Frozen a thousand times if it meant he could have just one more movie night, just a moment wrapped up with him. 

The way you haunt may dreams  
No, no, they can’t take that away from me.  
We may never, never meet again  
On the bumpy road of love

Spot didn’t dare sleep. When he slept he dreamt of Race, of them happy, of a future. When he woke he’d have to remember. He hated the plunging feeling he felt when he reached out for someone who was no longer there, the confusion that let to tears as the memories washed over him. So, he didn’t sleep.

Not being able to handle the sight of the living room any longer, he finally made his way to the last room in the apartment. He took a deep breath and held onto the hat as he pushed open there- his bedroom door.

Still, I’ll always, always keep the memory of  
The way you hold you knife  
The way we danced till three

As he entered the room he couldn’t help the bitter sweet laugh that had escaped him. He forgot to make up the bed, he thought as he crossed to the bed. 

They had a weird system on chores, but they usually got done. It had been Race’s turn to make the bed the day it had happened, but he had been so excited to get out the door, he had probably forgotten. He had had a big audition that morning, so rushed to get out the door, he almost forgot to kiss Spot on his way out. 

The room was covered in Race. His dance shoes where everywhere, spilling out of the basket where they kept them. His little succulents from Crutchie sat on the windowsill. The little table next Race’s side of the bed covered with pictures of him and Spot and little mementos. Spot picked up his favorite, a photo of the two of them dancing at Jack and David’s wedding.

Race had stayed up all night trying to teach him to dance, everything from the waltz to the tango, but when the time came at the wedding, Spot just wrapped his arms around his boyfriend’s waist and swayed to the music. Sarah had taken the photo, the two of them smiling softly at each other, Race resting his head on Spot’s.

The way you changed my life  
No, no, they can’t take that away from me 

Race had been the best thing to ever happen to Spot. From the moment he had met him, he knew he was perfect. Race was everything Spot wasn’t. He was soft, and kind, and goofy in a way that Spot could never explain. Most importantly, Race was his.

But now he was gone, and Spot was only left with the memories of the one he loved. And that was going to be ok.

No, they can’t take that away  
Can’t take that away  
Can’t take that away from me.

**Author's Note:**

> this made me cry i don't know why i did this. i hope you enjoyed though. do all the good stuff below cause that makes my day.


End file.
